New collection from Snickeriet

New Swedish design brand Snickeriet, a close partnership between carpenters and designers, has created their first in-house furniture and lighting collection including the FrankCabinet, the VerkDesk, the FäPendant and the Havet Cupboard

The firm consists of two carpenters and two designers. Per from Snickeriet explains, “In order to uncompromisingly develop handmade furniture with refined craftsmanship and new expressions, [the company] combines the roles of furniture producer and commission carpentry.”

“As a designer you look for someone who can realize you work. As a cabinetmaker you look for challenging tasks beyond your comfort zone. Snickeriet is a platforma at the intersection point, where everything from idea to production is in our own hands.” says Karl-Johan Hjerling, creative director and designer at Snickeriet. “We can let every idea develop as directly as possible, and work with solutions that would have been rejected by other furniture producers.”

Commission-based assignments constitute the company’s foundation and provide the balance to be able to develop an in-house collection without compromise or external requirements. All the parts of the process from idea to production are owned and carried out by Snickeriet. The objective is to allow every idea to be expressed and realized as pure and direct as possible, in every detail.

“If we can’t find fittings that we are looking for, we custom produce them.” says Karolina Stenfelt, founder and carpenter at Snickeriet.

“Verk is a desk based on a drawer. Building the perfect drawer is a classic journeyman examination and a measure of a carpenter’s skills. In VERK the drawer is put in focus, with exaggerated proportions and the housing as the actual working surface. The drawer and its housing is clad with a Swedish elm veneer we found stockpiled in the basement of a abandoned factory several years ago. The rare quality of the veneer offers a distinct wood grain that really suits the drawers exaggerated proportions well.” says Gunnar Dahl.

“The drawer is the desk. The way it’s set into the steel framework creates space at the sides of the desk, where objects can be hung to or leaned against.”

“Fä is a leather pendant lamp. The flat leather is pressed into its three-dimensional shape to create a self-supporting structure. The material is reshaped and displaced; it remains organic but becomes stable and rigid at the same time.”

“Fä (old fashioned Swedish word) are animals tamed by man. In FÄ we’ve been able to reshape and displace the properties of leather. As a viewer its hard to understand that the leather structure carries itself; that something so soft and organic can become so stiff, and that you can control the shape of it so well.” says Karin Wallenbeck. “Pressing the leather to the limit of what the material can endure also brings out its history and organic character. Flaunts, scars and natural character is emphasized. The leather is lacquered with multiple layers, which encapsules and preserves the character of the leather. The suede inside of the lamp is in contrast left soft and unvarnished.”

“Havet is a cabinet made out of pine. The surface treatment resembles a stormy ocean, created by combining traditional craftsmanship with an unconventional technique. The pattern is chiselled by hand using an angle grinder. Just like the waves on a windy sea, each cabinet created will be unique.”

First the cabinet is built as a classic cabinet, with right angles, and with all details and itsinteriors in place. The carpenters then chisel out the distinctive pattern – a process requiring as much time as building the cabinet itself. The pattern is carved on all sides and across all external details, creating a monolithic and sculptural gestalt.

Frank is a transparent cupboard. The ambition with the design and production of FRANK has been to make the craftsmanship visible and to be totally frank about the construction and process; from attachments made and the joining of materials to how the locking bolt move when used.

“The transparent exterior allows you to see in to the cupboard, but for us its more about you being able to see the inside of the material it self. By treating the plexi glass as if it was wood, the actual carpentry becomes visible, and you can clearly see its impact on the material.” says Karolina Stenfelt, founder and carpenter.

The piece consists of two separate elements. The case is made of plexi glass – a material without any origin in traditional carpentry. In this piece the material has been treated as if it was wood. For example, it is jointed by dovetailing, a technique often used in high-end wood furniture. As a consequence of the materials ability to capture and reflect light, the dovetail also creates a pattern that spreadsthroughout the cabinet from multiple angles.